Gardening

Attracting Birds, Butterflies, and Other Backyard Wildlife, Expanded Second Edition shows homeowners how to fill their yards and gardens with the sights and sounds of nature. Author David Mizejewski presents simple plans for reintroducing native plants that birds, butterflies, bees, and a whole host of critters can’t resist. He also shows ways of supplementing nature to further entice wildlife to yards and gardens.

The book features:

More than 200 photos of backyard wildlife habitats and the creatures they attract

17 fun, wildlife-friendly projects that the whole family can enjoy

Step-by-step instructions on how to have your yard or garden recognized as a Certified

Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation’s Garden for Wildlife program

Many people think of wildlife as something distant, creatures living in natural forests and remote public preserves. But most wildlife in the United States isn’t found in the distant wild. It lives on our private lands, in our very backyards. Because of this, the nation’s 10 million woodland owners are, in fact, at the forefront in protecting our wildlife for generations to come.

While most landowners want to help preserve the beauty of the natural environment, however, most are unsure where to begin. In Attracting Wildlife to Your Backyard, author and landowner Josh VanBrakle provides readers with 101 easy-to-follow activities and practical approaches to help do just that.

Few insects are more important than bees, wasps, and ants. They maintain the garden’s biological balance, fertilize vegetables, fruits, and flowers, and recycle nutrients within the soil. It’s no exaggeration to say that a garden can’t be understood without an understanding of its insects. Bees, Wasps, and Ants explores the importance of the Hymenoptera and explains how gardeners can encourage (or discourage) them in the garden. Part One includes a summary of their biology and a tour of what role they play in each part of the garden. Part Two takes a closer look at the individual groups within the family, including sawflies, horntails, woodwasps, parasitic wasps, predatory wasps, bees, and ants.

Invasive species are everywhere, from forests and prairies to mountaintops and river mouths. Their rampant nature and sheer numbers appear to overtake fragile native species and forever change the ecosystems that they depend on. Concerns that invasive species represent significant threats to global biodiversity and ecological integrity permeate conversations from schoolrooms to board rooms, and concerned citizens grapple with how to rapidly and efficiently manage their populations. These worries have culminated in an ongoing “war on invasive species,” where the arsenal is stocked with bulldozers, chainsaws and herbicides put to the task of their immediate eradication. In Hawaii, mangrove trees (Avicennia spp.) are sprayed with glyphosate and left to decompose on the sandy shorelines where they grow, and in Washington, helicopters apply the herbicide Imazapyr to smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) growing in estuaries. The “war on invasive species” is in full swing, but given the scope of such potentially dangerous and ecologically degrading eradication practices, it is necessary to question the very nature of the battle.

Beyond the War on Invasive Species offers a much-needed alternative perspective on invasive species and the best practices for their management based on a holistic, permaculture-inspired framework. Utilizing the latest research and thinking on the changing nature of ecological systems, Beyond the War on Invasive Species closely examines the factors that are largely missing from the common conceptions of invasive species, including how the colliding effects of climate change, habitat destruction, and changes in land use and management contribute to their proliferation. Beyond the War on Invasive Species demonstrates that there is more to the story of invasive species than is commonly conceived, and offers ways of understanding their presence and ecosystem effects in order to make more ecologically responsible choices in land restoration and biodiversity conservation that address the root of the invasion phenomenon. The choices we make on a daily basis—the ways we procure food, shelter, water, medicine and transportation—are the major drivers of contemporary changes in ecosystem structure and function; therefore, deep and long-lasting ecological restoration outcomes will come not just from eliminating invasive species, but through conscientious redesign of these production systems.

Win the blue ribbon every time! Master Gardener Jodi Torpey offers all the information you need to grow champion vegetables: beans, beets, cabbages, cucumbers, eggplants, onions, peppers, pumpkins, squash, and tomatoes. She covers everything from choosing the right varieties and scheduling planting dates to harvesting, preparing, and transporting your produce. She also walks you through every aspect of competitive showing, with useful tips for thinking like a judge. This book will delight you with lively photos of mammoth pumpkins, truly gigantic onions, perfectly pear-shaped eggplants, and the farmers and gardeners who grow them. Filled with the excitement of a county fair, it’s a fun read as well as a solid guide to growing the biggest, tastiest, best-looking vegetables for miles around.

This is a practical and engaging guide to transforming an ordinary backyard into a productive farm.

Homesteading is experiencing a revival among both rural and urban residents who want to get back to basics and live closer to the land. With this book, homeowners will obtain both inspiration and instruction for transforming their grassy yard into a lush farm that can produce all the food they need.

The author is an experienced woodworker and homesteader who shows how to plan and design a backyard farm. He offers expert advice for making all of the essential hard-working structures that are needed to sustain small-scale agriculture.

More than just a manual, the book also offers entertaining and enlightening interviews with both experts and “average Joe” farmers. We learn what motivates them to become backyard farmers, the lessons that they have to share, and maybe even a couple of funny stories along the way.

In an organic garden, plants in optimum health thrive abundantly, produce harvests with amazing taste, and possess the ability to fight off plant predators. When they don't, there's often something lacking in their proper nutrition. Maybe they are missing beneficial microorganism companions, or perhaps they are short of the energy needed to reach their full nutrient-dense potential. The solution is to "start with the soil," but healthy soil doesn't happen just by composting, fertilizing or companion planting alone. The solution can be found in Building Soils Naturally, which gives gardeners a hands-on plan for creating productive, living soil by using a practical, holistic approach - crafted right in your garden.

Anyone can grow some amazing white button mushrooms at home with this "just add water" countertop kit that comes complete with casing soil and easy to follow directions. You will never eat mushrooms fresher than twisting them from their growing media and cooking them up seconds later! White buttons grow on a composted straw media and fruit when covered with soil (included), so all you need to do is add the soil, water, and watch...It only takes a few weeks for the mushrooms to spring forth and merely days to mature before you are harvesting from your kit! Expect to harvest about 3-4 pounds of mushrooms! Kit measures 16x10x6 inches and comes complete with casing soil and directions, just add water! Because each mushroom kit is freshly packed to order, please allow five days to ship your order.

Mushroom kits are available for shipment to USA addresses ONLY.

Button Mushroom kits are only available September - May in North America.

History, literature, and botany meet in this charming tour of how humans have relied on plants to nourish, shelter, heal, clothe, and even entertain us. Did you know that during World War II, the U.S. Navy paid children to collect milkweed’s fluffy white floss, which was then used as filling for life preservers? And Native Americans in the deserts of the Southwest traditionally crafted tattoo needles from prickly pear cactus spines. These are just two of the dozens of tidbits that Tammi Hartung highlights in the tales of 45 native North American flowers, herbs, and trees that have rescued and delighted us for centuries.

An exceptional solution for weeding grass, the Mini gets in the slightest of areas with surprising precision, and it's perfect for lifting out smaller taprooted weeds intact. The sharp, narrow blade rips up tough soil, and the Mini’s small size makes it perfect for container gardening. Because it easily fits in your pocket, you can always have it with you when you are in the yard or garden. Built as tough as the original CobraHead, the Mini features a fully tempered forged steel blade and a nearly unbreakable composite plastic handle that is comfortable in almost any hand. Built to last, CobraHead tools can be counted on for years of service.

The combination of the specialized blade and the comfortable, ergonomic handle let you reach every weed in your garden without worrying about damaging your flowers. Whether you need to get in between rows of vegetables or cracks in your walkway, the Mini will get the job done. Please allow two weeks for delivery.

If you drink coffee (or can get the grounds in bulk from a coffee shop),an 8-ounce package of the Coffee Cultivator makes a great, fun way to recycle used coffee grounds, filters and all!With the starter culture, you can fill any container with a lid day after day with your grounds and soon you will be cooking up some tasty oyster mushrooms to celebrate your willingness to help the environment!

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